The Impact of General Aviation

MEI Checkride: Passed!

General aviation, by defintion, are all civillian air operations other than scheduled air services. It takes place in the form of flight training offered at flight schools, hobby pilots, aerobatics, agricultural flying (ag flying - aka cropdusters), personal private jet flights, and more! I took a couple GA flights today, one of them being my MEI checkride! And I did pass, if you were wondering (check out the photo above)!

When I think of general aviation, I think mainly of the community who fly for pure enjoyment. When flying in GA, there is so much more to do than just sightsee up at altitude or practice manuevers. Many small airports welcome planes into their airport, free of charge (without landing fee). Some airports may even host GA events to bring the community together - such as monthly breakfasts, aviation seminars, FAAST Team meetings, airshows, plane meetups, etc.!

Recentley, I've been to 2 GA events near my home airports. One was a monthly GA breakfast meetup, and another was the KFYE "Thunder over Fayette County" Airshow! Both were great events and really showcased how inviting the aviation community is. At the breakfast, we did a case study brief on GA accidents and discuessed the risks of flying at non-towered airports, mid-air collisions, ADS-B, intersecting runways.  One accident we discussed was the 2021 Colorado mid-air crash with the Key Lime metroliner and a Cirrus SR22. We noted that the pilot was not complying with POH/AFM for the aircraft, having flaps set at 50%, but cruising way above Vfe (max flaps speed). When flying general aviation, or with new aircraft, it is very important that you stay current and proficient! Currency (flight review + passenger currency) is NOT proficiency! As GA pilots, we discussed that going up with a qualified instructor frequentley is the key to ensure our proficiency on safety procedures and aircraft handling. One statistic that I learned in my CFI training, was that 65% of all daily accidents are caused by GA. In general aviation, we are not quite as heavily regulated by our company as pilots, or watched by ATC (if landing at untowered airports). This is why it is so important that we stay proficient and use the safest practices in flight.

After some great dicussion on how we can apply safe new practices to our flying, I had the chance to go around and look at some of the planes flown into the breakfast. One in particular was an amphibious plane (sea plane that has the capability to land on water and land). I had the opportunity to meet the pilot and sit in the cockpit! After flying for so long in the same planes as an instructor (Cessna 152/172s), getting the chance to sit in a new aircraft was really a refreshing and humbling feeling. One of my goals has always been to my seaplane rating and my tailwheel; and now it just feels like I'm one step closer to accomplishing that goal!

Seaplane at Fly-In

Rainbow around my plane's shadow

More recentley, I attended the KFYE airshow! It was a great time and drew a big crowd for such a small airport! Events put on like this are what inspire many people to become pilots! I know I would love to be able to do loops, rolls, and all the awesome aerobatic manuevers that the pilots perform at shows.

KFYE airshow

The general aviation community provides very unique opportunities to continually advance your aviation education, even after you've obtained your licenses. Attending the airshow and small GA meetups continually reminds me of the passion for flight and for safety in our community, which is very inspring. It makes me feel safer knowing that when I go up in the air, other people are out there trying to perate as safely as I am. Remember, your pilot license is a "license to learn". You know enough to keep you safe, legal, and to enjoy your time in flight. It is up to you, as the pilot, to seek out new opportunities to ensure you stay proficient - in stick and rudder skill and in knowledge!